SSC Napoli
Appearance

Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli, commonly known as SSC Napoli or simply Napoli, is an Italian professional football club based in Naples, Campania that plays in the Serie A, the top league of Italian football.
Quotes about
[edit]A
[edit]- Napoli has given me back my joy. [...] a city that has always been synonymous with football. I had never seen the passion I am experiencing here before, and then Maradona wore this blue shirt.
- Raúl Albiol, from an interview by El Pais, quoted in Albiol, a Napoli ho ritrovato la gioia di giocare, Ansa.it, 6 September 2013.
B
[edit]- Having played for Napoli stays with you for the rest of your life.
- Claudio Bellucci, from an interview by Radio Marte, quoted in Claudio Bellucci: "Il Parma-Napoli del '98 dramma sportivo", Iotifonapoli.com, 25 September 2018.
- I have experienced Champions League matches. The city has always been behind the Azzurri team; in fact, it seemed as if the whole city was on the pitch alongside the team. Napoli has a special and extraordinary fan base. Napoli is the spirit of the city.
- Salvatore Biazzo, quoted in Biazzo: Il Napoli gioca un calcio europeo, SoloNapoli.com, 3 May 2011.
- [Napoli represents] a piece of my life, football. My passion. I lived in symbiosis with the blue shirt, joys and sorrows. It was a great love.
- Giuseppe Bruscolotti, quoted in Nicola Sellitti, Bruscolotti, una vita in azzurro: "Napoli, ricorda quella partita dell'86", Repubblica.it, 9 February 2016.
C
[edit]- Today, it is not just “Napoli” playing. Today, a city is playing, rallying around the team once again. Because here, there is a desire to live a dream, a fairy tale. Dreams, good feelings, fairy tales, support, fairness: what everyone needs.
- Fabio Caressa, presentation of Napoli vs. Inter, 2 March 2008.
- Napoli football has a history all of its own, which is inextricably linked to that of the city of Naples: its warmth, its folklore in following football. [...] The true Napoli fan, the generous, friendly one, whose choices are driven by the heart, has something unique and original. It is reminiscent of Italian families in the south. Sentimentally “exaggerated” (!) but precisely for this reason capable of giving you their soul, if necessary.
- Valeria Ciardiello, quoted in 'Intervista doppia a Valeria Ciardiello e Claudia Mercurio: Juve-Napoli, un big match che vale lo scudetto!, golditacco.it, 13 February 2016.
D
[edit]- Dear Inler, there may be room for us at Napoli, but Napoli is a faith. The player wants a release clause with a value that suggests we are a stepping stone to other shores, and that is not good. Inler must show that he wants to embrace the project.
- Aurelio De Laurentiis, quoted in «A Inler e Criscito dico che il Napoli è una fede», Corrieredellosport.it, 9 June 2011.
- Napoli can prove that sport and football can be played with clean hands without the need to fix matches, as Moggi did with Juventus and as, unfortunately, seems to be happening again [referring to the 2011 football betting scandal]. A pact of loyalty could be made between Naples and De Laurentiis, even in sport. Football plays a fundamental role in the city's revival.
- Luigi de Magistris, from a radio interview to Radio Kiss Kiss, 7 June 2011.
- I love Naples and I am a big Napoli fan, but that shirt would have been too much for me: I was afraid of not doing what I did. I was almost always absent, even when playing against them: scoring against them was like scoring against my brother, and that's why it was better to avoid it.
- Antonio Di Natale, from an interview by Radiocrc; quoted in Udinese, Di Natale "scansava" il Napoli: "Non volevo far gol a un fratello", Gazzetta.it, 22 March 2017.
F
[edit]- I dedicated 33 years of my life to Napoli, which is a large part of my existence, and I have thousands of special memories. But memories must be put away: life always begins tomorrow morning. One big regret is Gianluca Vialli: I had practically signed him, but the press found out and published the news. There were rumours in Genoa and the Sampdoria president at the time withdrew and didn't sell him to me. What does it mean to have had Maradona on the team? Diego represented a huge success for Napoli, the club and all the Neapolitan fans in terms of football. We had got used to seeing him play with us and didn't realise how great he was. Every game he played became legendary. These are truly unique memories.
- Corrado Ferlaino, quoted in Le ottanta candeline di Ferlaino, corrierinocampaniasport.it, 18 May 2011.
G
[edit]- (About his arrival in Naples) As soon as I arrived, I went to the supermarket and everyone recognised me. I had to pose with everyone for souvenir photos and in the end I even lost my three-year-old son. Since then, however, when I go shopping with my wife, I wear a cap. Another time, in the Arab quarter, it took me an hour to leave a butcher's shop. Another evening at the cinema, I couldn't even watch the whole film because I had to sign autographs for the fans.
- Faouzi Ghoulam, Napoli, Ghoulam felicemente travolto: "Non ho più una vita privata normale", gazzetta.it, 8 April 2014.
- Before the match against Porto, I went to buy a pair of shoes, and an hour later my photo was already circulating on Twitter. It's really impressive; I no longer have a normal private life.
- Faouzi Ghoulam, Napoli, Ghoulam felicemente travolto: "Non ho più una vita privata normale", gazzetta.it, 8 April 2014.
H
[edit]- As a footballer, no one makes you feel like the Napoli fans do. I didn't know much about the history of Napoli, I understood it when I arrived, there was protest and I realised that they live for football. The stadium isn't modern, but as soon as I faced them in Serie B, I saw that there were 60,000 people who cared deeply.
- Marek Hamšík, from an interview by the Borussia Dortmund website, quoted in Sahin al sito ufficiale: "Giocare al San Paolo con quei tifosi vale una carriera intera", Calcio Napoli 24.it, 18 September 2013.
- When I started looking for my first home in the city, I realised that everyone I met knew my name and my story. I was incredulous. The affection I had felt in Brescia was nothing compared to the passion of the Neapolitan fans. In Brescia, I was a young lad whom no one knew, while in Naples, I couldn't stop for a coffee without meeting fans.
- Marek Hamšík, Per Napoli, theplayerstribune.com.
- When we won the Coppa Italia in 2012, I understood what Naples was really like. The city hadn't won a trophy in 25 years, and after our victory in Rome, I saw a new Naples. It was like the city had gone mad. I think I can describe it as beautiful madness, the best kind of madness. When we returned from Rome, crowds poured out of their flats onto the streets, flags waving from every window: it was magical. When you win in Naples, it's the best victory in the world because it's not just the players who win, but the city and its people.
- Marek Hamšík, Per Napoli, theplayerstribune.com.
- In Naples, it's all about emotion.
- Gonzalo Higuaín, Italia-Argentina in campo per il Papa L'emozione di Higuain e di Insigne, Ilmattino.it, 12 August 2013.
L
[edit]- In Naples, you can die or be beaten up for trivial reasons. Then you go to the stadium and the same person, who was ready to fight over a simple argument, suddenly enters into a festive atmosphere. I believe there is also an atmosphere of respect: an involuntary agreement among organised crime to leave the football team alone. At the match, you meet people with multiple convictions who behave impeccably at the stadium and are uniquely kind.
- Amato Lamberti, quoted in Mimmo Carratelli, I tifosi più civili d'Europa?; in Amalia Signorelli, Cultura popolare a Napoli e in Campania nel Novecento, Guida Editori, 2002, p. 146. ISBN 88-7188-643-7
- I'm here because I feel a bit Neapolitan, I'm as passionate as my new fans. Napoli deserved for me to wait for them, given my character; I wouldn't have behaved the same way elsewhere. I wanted to experience different feelings that I haven't felt elsewhere. :*Cristiano Lucarelli, quoted in Mimmo Malfitano, «Lucarelli, un premio se segni più di Toni», La Gazzetta dello Sport, 24 August 2010.
M
[edit]- Everyone says: this was the best of Barcelona, this was the best of Real Madrid, this was the best of Chelsea, this was the best... I am proud to have been the best in Naples.
- Diego Armando Maradona; in 1995, after receiving the Ballon d'Or for his career, in the special episode of the television programme Tifosi Napoletani.
- Are there any players I dislike? Not any particular faces, but a team, especially after the rough Italian Cup and Super Cup finals: Napoli. When I face them, something clicks.
- Claudio Marchisio, quoted in Marchisio: "Napoli antipatico". Replica: "Grave offesa". La Juve: "Falso", Gazzetta.it, 10 January 2013.
S
[edit]- All footballers should experience what it means to play for Napoli.
- Omar Sivori, quoted by his son Nestor in Tuttosport, 7 November 2009, p. 7.
T
[edit]- In the morning we went to warm up at the San Paolo, Carlos told me about this stadium, but I, who had played for Barça, said to myself, what's the big deal? Yet when I set foot on that pitch, I felt something magical, something different. In the evening, when the Champions League anthem was played, seeing eighty thousand people booing us, I realised what trouble we were in... I've played a few important matches in my career, but when I heard that roar, it was the first time my legs trembled. Well, that's when I realised that this isn't just a team for them, it's a visceral love, like that between a mother and her child. It was the only time I stayed on the pitch after losing to enjoy the spectacle.
- Yaya Touré, from the TV program I signori del calcio, Sky sport; quoted in Yayà Tourè: «Quando giocai al San Paolo mi tremarono le gambe, un posto magico», Corriere del mezzogiorno.it, 11 January 2013.

- In Naples, the phenomenon of football is not exclusively sporting. It excites the imagination, reawakens dormant pride and encourages a type of participation that is not only complementary to the spectacle but very often becomes its protagonist. (p. 134)
- Quoted in Amalia Signorelli (editor), I tifosi più civili d'Europa?, in Cultura popolare a Napoli e in Campania nel Novecento, Guida Editori, 2002, pp. 133-150. ISBN 88-7188-643-7.
- The “bond” between Neapolitan fans and their football team does not end on Sunday when the match is played. Napoli is a topic of discussion throughout the week and, indeed, throughout the year. The relationship is one of visceral passion because Neapolitan fans have always imbued the match and the team with extreme significance and value. In a city that has long been subjugated, misunderstood and mistreated, the football team, capable of challenging the “teams” of more advanced and established cities, and perhaps even beating them, has been the only means of visibility and affirmation. It has ended up interpreting the dreams, ambitions, revenge and success that Naples lacked in too many other areas. Perceived as the only visible and competitive representation of the city, when it failed, the reaction was all the more angry. For a long time, Napoli Calcio was the “outlet” for Neapolitans condemned, in their everyday lives, to suffer, wait, wear themselves out and be disappointed. (p. 134)
- Quoted in Amalia Signorelli (editor), I tifosi più civili d'Europa?, in Cultura popolare a Napoli e in Campania nel Novecento, Guida Editori, 2002, pp. 133-150. ISBN 88-7188-643-7.
- Napoli Calcio was the “real fairy tale” of the Neapolitans, their wildest dream, a passion shared by all social classes, which saw profuse dedication and financial sacrifice in support of the team, especially among the less well-off, a commitment that many would have liked to see directed and realised in civil life. (p. 133)
- Quoted in Amalia Signorelli (editor), I tifosi più civili d'Europa?, in Cultura popolare a Napoli e in Campania nel Novecento, Guida Editori, 2002, pp. 133-150. ISBN 88-7188-643-7.
- The events surrounding the football team go beyond sporting results. They are occasions, protests, a showcase for the creative ability of the Neapolitan people. Exaltation, disappointment, indignation and protest have their roots in the renowned Neapolitan inventiveness, with its irony, cynicism, passion, capacity for surprise and accompanying poetic and singing talent. (p. 134)
- Quoted in Amalia Signorelli (editor), I tifosi più civili d'Europa?, in Cultura popolare a Napoli e in Campania nel Novecento, Guida Editori, 2002, pp. 133-150. ISBN 88-7188-643-7.
- It is no exaggeration to say that the football team in Naples is the “flag” that brings together and expresses, at least among the more working-class and less educated sections of society, but not only among them, the feelings and resentments of the city's long and complex history. (p. 134)
- Quoted in Amalia Signorelli (editor), I tifosi più civili d'Europa?, in Cultura popolare a Napoli e in Campania nel Novecento, Guida Editori, 2002, pp. 133-150. ISBN 88-7188-643-7.

